Bed lee rail mounting



Dec. 22, 1942- E. E. WOLLER BED LEE RAIL'MOUNTING Qrginal Filed Nov. 13, 1939 IN VENTOR. Z4/Wd i www? BMM, @5w/f ATTORNEY 5 Patented Dec. 22, 1942 BED LEE RAIL MOUNTING Edward E. Wo'llcr, Kenosha,

New York, N. Y., a-corporaftion mons Company, of Delaware Wis., assigner to Sim- Original application November 13, 1939, Serial No.

Divided and t 1940, Serial No. 336,064

3 Claims.

This invention relates to an improved arrangement for mounting la lee rail on a bed and the main object of the invention is to provide an inexpensive but eiective and elicient arrangement for mounting a lee rail on a bed so that it may be quickly and easily removed or mounted as occasion requires. In general, it is the object of the invention to provide an improved bed lee rail mounting, and other objects and advantages of the invention will be understood by reference to the following specication and accompanying drawing wherein there is illustrated a selected form of the improved arrangement for removably mounting a lee rail on a bed structure.

In the drawing:

Fig. i is a perspective illustrating one typical application of lee rails to a bed structure;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section through a portion of one of the lee rails illustrated in Fig. l; and

Fig. 3 is a transverse section through a portion of the bed structure including means for cooperating with a lee rail for removably mounting the same on the bed structure.

This application is a division of co-pending application Serial Number 303,933, which became Patent No. 2,297,602 on Sept. 29, 1942.

In Figure 1 there is illustrated one corner of a stateroom or other room wherein there is provided a folding or other upper berth 5, the same comprising a suitable outer frame 6 which supports any desired form of bed bottom structure, mattress, or both. Because of the elevation of the berth 5 from the oor, it is in many cases desirable that an upstanding side frame or lee rail be provided to prevent the occupant from rolling out. In this instance, lee rails 1 and 8 are shown associated with one longitudinal side of the berth and a lee rail 9 is shown associated with one end of the berth.

Where the berth 5 is arranged to be folded from its operative position as shown in full lines in Figure l to a folded position against the wall of the room as indicated in broken lines in Figure l, it is desirable that the lee rails be removed or collapsed so as to reduce the eXtent to which ythe bed structure projects from the wall. In this instance, the lee rails are removably mounted so that they may be stored fiat in the berth when it is folded or elsewhere if preferred.

Lee rails such as typified by the above described arrangement are employed in other places, for example, on hospital beds, childrens beds and in other instances not necessarily embodying an upper or elevated bed structure and it will be unhis Aapplication May 20,

derstood that the herein described invention is applicable generally to the mounting of lee rails on beds and that it is not restricted in its application to the illustrated rfolding berth arrangement.

The lee rails such as typified by the end lee rail 9 may conveniently be made of tubular metal suitably formed and provided with vertically eX- tending end portions I0 and II` In one of the end portions, i. e., the end portion il, there is mounted a post member I 2, the same depending from the lower end of the lee rail end portion II and 'being rigidly anchored therein in any suit- 'able manner.

In the other lee rail end member Hl there is laterally adjustably mounted another post member I3. As best shown in Figure 2, said post member I3 is provided with a stem part Iii of smaller transverse dimension than the corresponding dimension of the hollow end part iii of the lee rail. Intermediate its ends, the post stem I4 is provided with a socket or recess I5 which receives a helical coil spring I 6. The said coil spring projects from the side of said stem part and engages the adjacent inside surface of the hollow lee rail part I0 and is under suicient compression to yieldingly urge the post and its stem part to one limit of its range of lateral movement as determined by the inside wall portion Il of the hollow lee rail part I0.

The post I3 is anchored against withdrawal from the lee rail part I0 in any suitable manner, in this instance by means of a rivet or the like I8 extending transversely through the lee rail part Ill and through an enlarged opening I9 in the stem I4. Said opening I9 is of such size that the post I3 and its stem I4 may freely :move to the full extent permitted by the relatively greater interior dimension of the lee rail part I0 as compared with the stem I 4.

The bed structure is provided with sockets for receiving the posts I2 and 13, such sockets being conveniently in the form of tubes such as indicated at 20 in Figure 3, the same being suitably mounted in the frame 6 of the bed. In this instance, the frame 6 is illustrated as being formed of upper and lower tubular members 2| and 22, respectively, suitably connected and covered with a sheet metal facing 23. The socket 20 is positioned in the frame by being passed through suitable holes drilled through the upper member 2l and by being seated in the lower member 22 by being passed through a hole drilled in the upper wall portion thereof. The socket tube 20 may be anchored in place by suitable means, for example,

perienced in securing exact corresponding spacing between the posts of the lee rail and the sockets I of the bed frame.

Inaccuracies in such spacing result in serious diiiiculties in respect of the mounting of the lee rail on the bed frame and the removal of the lee rail. In the described arrangement, such difiiculties are eiectively overcome since one of the lee rail posts I3 is laterally adjustable to an extent which is suii'icient to permit the post to adjust itself to the exact location and alignment of the socket into which it is to be inserted. l

The range of adjustment practically feasible in structures such as above described is ample to overcome the otherwise adverse effect of the normal range of inaccuracy experienced in respect of the relative spacing of the posts and sockets in the practical manufacture of devices of this character. As best shown in Figure 3, the socket forming tube 20 may be permitted to project upwardly above the top surface of the bed frame structure 6 to such an extent as to prevent engagement of the lower ends of the lee rail parts IU and I I, with the adjacent top surface of the bed side frame; By this means, scratching of the finish of the bed structure by the lee rail is avoided.

Changes in the described ystructure may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, the scope of which should be determined by reference to the following claims, the same being construed as broadly as possible consistent with the state of the art.

'ment in said hollow lee rail portion, and said frame having a pair of relatively iixed spaced sockets respectively adapted to receive said posts for removably mounting said lee rail on said frame.

2. In a bed structure, a frame member, a lee rail having a hollow portion, a pair of relatively spaced posts extending from said lee rail, one of said posts having a portion extending into said hollow lee rail portion and laterally movable therein, means for anchoring said laterally movable post to said lee rail, means carried by said post for resiliently urging said post toward one limit of its lateral movement in said hollow lee rail portion, and said frame having a pair of relatively fixed spaced sockets respectively adapted to receive said posts for removably mounting said lee rail on said frame. y

3. A lee rail structure of the class described comprising a hollow post part, a post extension having a portion projecting from said hollow post part and a portion extending inwardlyv into said hollow part, said inwardly extending portion being laterally movable in the hollow post part, means for anchoring said laterally movable post extension against endwise removal from said hollow t post part, and means for resiliently holding said post extension in a predetermined position ot lateral adjustment relative to the hollow post part. EDWARD E. WOLLER. 

